2020 NFL Draft: Top Rookie of Year candidate from each team

Prior to the start of the offseason, the Arizona Cardinals were considered potential sleepers in the NFC due to the fact that Kyler Murray officially had a year of starting experience under his belt, and seemed ready to take another positive step in the right direction.

Once the Cardinals pulled off a surprise trade with the Houston Texans to acquire one of the league’s top wide receivers in DeAndre Hopkins, the expectations in Arizona hit new levels.

But of course, an offense loaded with weapons like the Cardinals have all of a sudden can only do so much on their own without the proper support on the other sides of the football, and whether Arizona can in fact live up to the hype could come down to the play on defense.

Luckily for the Cardinals, the defense was able to add another key playmaker early on in the draft by adding Clemson’s Isaiah Simmons, who emerged as a top linebacker in the country after spending his first three years with the Tigers at safety.

If all goes well for the Cardinals, Simmons will fit in right away on Arizona’s defense, and possibly end up being a difference-maker over whether the team has what it takes to emerge as a playoff contender.